Late goal helps Ephs beat Seahawks 1-0

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Williams College women's hockey team (7-4-0) played a great game tonight, defeating out-of-conference opponent Salve Regina (5-6-2) 1-0 and outshooting them 42 to 19. Sophomore Alex Lovaas(Wayzata, Minn.) scored the game winning goal at 11:52 in the third period to secure the victory for the Ephs, while Williams junior goalie Margaret Draper(Belmont, Mass.) earned her first shut out of the season.

The first period began with Williams junior Emily Krueger (Manasquan, N.J.) testing junior goalie Colleen Marcik (Madison, Conn.) with a shot in the slot. Marcik made a good save, deflecting the shot into the far corner. From there, play went up and down the ice as both teams settled into the game. 

The Ephs had several good looks on net throughout the period, with senior Michaela Levine (Lititz, Pa.) missing a slap shot from the slot just above Marcik's net, and junior duo Krueger and Chelsey Stevenson (Tilbury, Ontario) getting two consecutive shots on net. However Marcik stayed tough between the posts and displayed good rebound control, either deflecting shots into the corners or making gloves saves to fend off the Ephs.

At 16:26, Salve Regina received a penalty. The Ephs continued to pressure the Seahawks, but were unable to capitalize on the one man advantage. 

With 15 seconds to go in the period, Draper came up with a big glove save to keep the score tied at 0-0 when she was screened by Salve Regina players. 

Having outshot Salve Regina 12 to 3 in the first, Williams continued to control play in the second period. Junior Sara Lehman (Lexington, Mass.) and freshman Annie Rush (Anchorage, Alaska) made a good play halfway through the period, skating up the ice as a team to fire two consecutive shots on the Seahawks goalie. 

Playing physical hockey, Salve Regina received back-to-back penalties at 11:00 and 13:43, but Marcik stayed big in net once again to hold off the Ephs.

With 5 minutes to go in the period, Williams received a penalty, giving Salve Regina an opportunity to score. Senior Cheyenne Boyd (Phoenix, AZ) fired a shot from the slot that rebounded off of Draper's pads. Before the puck could get away from her she fell on it, keeping the score tied at 0-0 going into the third frame.

The third period began with a Salve Regina power play at 2:26. Draper stayed tough between the pipes, making 3 butterfly saves for the penalty kill. 

At 12:46 Salve Regina had a one man advantage once more, but Williams managed to hold off the Seahawks with a great blocked shot by sophomore Kearan Burke (Shrewsbury, Mass.) which was then cleared by senior Eliza Noyes (Concord, Mass.).

The Ephs gained momentum from the penalty kill, keeping the puck in the Seahawk end to earn a scoring opportunity. At 11:52, sophomore Emily Eide (Edina, Minn.) passed the puck to Lovaas. Lovaas cut the seam, and took a slap shot that hit the post on Marcik's blocker side, rebounding directly down into the net and scoring her second goal of the season.

Williams head coach Meghan Gillis commented, "Marcik was doing a great job saving our low shots during power plays, so going into the third period our team focused on shooting high to get a goal, which is exactly what Lovaas did to give us the lead."

Up 1-0, the Ephs played strong defense to hold off Salve Regina for the remainder of the period. With under 10 minutes to go, Lovaas and Noyes each blocked slap shots off Seahawk zone entries, clearing the puck from the Williams' end. 

With 40 seconds left in the game, the Seahawks pulled their goalie to get a one man advantage over the Ephs. Once again Draper showed good rebound control, catching a flying puck in her glove for the whistle.